Intelligent mirror

ABSTRACT

A mobile telephone or cellular telephone unit and a rearview mirror housing of an automobile are combined to provide an improved telephone apparatus that allows for efficient projection of images on a windshield of a vehicle.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to the field of smartphones and their usein vehicles.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The use of cellular telephones within automobiles is well known forproviding a convenient means of communication. However, certain uses ofthis type of device while driving carries with it safety risks.Accordingly, many jurisdictions now deem it a violation of the law todial, to text, to email or to talk on a cellular telephone while holdingthe phone. In order to permit drivers to use their phones while driving,but without violating the law, proposals have been made for mountingmobile telephones in a number of places within an automobile. Forexample, mountings for cellular telephones have been placed in thecenter console between the driver and the passenger seat and on thedashboard of a car. Additionally, proposals have been made to storecellular telephones within rearview mirror housings.

Although rearview mirror housings have been designed to hold cellulartelephones, the uses of cellular telephones while contained within thesehousings have, to date, been limited to predictable applications. Thus,there is a need to develop new and non-obvious technologies, devices anduses for unleashing the potential applications for using a cellulartelephone while in a vehicle.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides a device for displaying images on thewindshield of a car or other vehicle. The device for displaying imagesmay be configured to receive a computer device such as a cellulartelephone that is a smartphone or other portable computer device, topermit a user to use his or her computer device and to display imagesthat appear on the device on a windshield of a vehicle. A “smartphone”is a cellular telephone that permits a user to do more than simply placetelephone calls. For example, it is a device that is configured topermit a user to run one or more applications and/or to store datalocally and/or to communicate with remote sources and to download datafrom those sources, as well as to transmit data to those sources. Anexample of a smartphone is Apple's iPhone. In various embodiments, thedevice for displaying images is an intelligent mirror that can be usedto achieve one or more if not all of the following benefits: charging ofthe computer device, hands free use of the computer device andgenerating a heads up display, which refers to a transparent displaythat presents data without requiring users to look away from their usualviewpoints.

According to a first embodiment, the present invention is directed to arearview mirror comprising: (a) a housing, wherein the housing comprisesa docking element that is configured to receive a smartphone; (b) areflective surface; (c) a touchscreen, wherein the touchscreen overlayspart or all of the reflective surface and the touchscreen is configuredto operate in at least two modes, wherein in a first mode thetouchscreen is a graphic user interface that is configured to receiveinput from a user and wherein in a second mode, the touchscreen istransparent, thereby allowing reflection of light; and (d) a projector,wherein the projector is located on a rear side of the housing and isconfigured to project an image onto a windshield, wherein the rearviewmirror is mounted within a vehicle.

According to a second embodiment, the present invention is directed toan automobile comprising: (a) an interior cabin; (b) a windshield; and(c) a rearview mirror that comprises (i) a housing, wherein the housingcomprises a docking element that is configured to receive a smartphone(or other computer device), (ii) a reflective surface; (iii) atouchscreen, wherein the touchscreen overlays part or all of thereflective surface and the touchscreen is configured to operate in atleast two modes, wherein in a first mode the touchscreen is a graphicuser interface that is configured to receive input from a user andwherein in a second mode, the touchscreen is transparent therebyallowing reflection of light; and (iv) a projector, wherein theprojector is located on a rear side of the housing and is configured toproject an image onto a windshield.

Through the various embodiments of the present invention, one canefficiently and effectively use a computer device such as a smartphonewithin a vehicle. The various embodiments may be configured to allow forhands-free and/or touch controlled operation.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

Various embodiments of the present invention are described in theaccompanying figures. These figures are provided for illustrativepurposes and unless specified are not intended to be limiting. In orderto provide the reader with an understanding of the various embodimentsof the present invention, within these figures, different elements arenot necessarily drawn to scale. Also to assist the reader, in a numberof the figures there are notations of L and R, which refer to the leftand right side of the rearview mirror when viewed by an occupant of avehicle.

FIG. 1 is a representation of a front view of an intelligent mirror ofthe present invention.

FIG. 2 is a representation of a front view of an intelligent mirror ofthe present invention with a portion of the mirror in a verticalorientation.

FIG. 3 is a representation of a side view of a mirror of the presentinvention.

FIG. 4 is a representation of a front view of an intelligent mirror ofthe present invention, wherein a smartphone is partially inserted intothe mirror.

FIG. 5 is a representation of a rear view of an intelligent mirror ofthe present invention.

FIG. 6 is a representation of a side view of an intelligent mirror ofthe present invention.

FIG. 7 is a representation of a front view of an intelligent mirror ofthe present invention, as well as certain internal circuitry.

FIG. 8 is a representation of a part of an automobile that contains amirror of the present invention and a person.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Reference will now be made in detail to various embodiments of thepresent invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanyingfigures. In the following detailed description, numerous specificdetails are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding ofthe present invention. However, unless otherwise indicated or implicitfrom context, the details are intended to be examples and should not bedeemed to limit the scope of the invention in any way.

Any of the features of the various embodiments described herein can beused in conjunction with features described in connection with any otherembodiments disclosed unless otherwise specified. Thus, featuresdescribed in connection with the various or specific embodiments are notto be construed as not suitable in connection with other embodimentsdisclosed herein unless such exclusivity is explicitly stated orimplicit from context.

According to one embodiment, the present invention is directed to arearview mirror, which may also be referred to as an intelligent mirror.The rearview mirror comprises a housing, a reflective surface, atouchscreen and a projector.

The housing comprises a docking element that is configured to receive acomputer device such as a smartphone (e.g., an iPhone, a Blackberry, oran Android) or other computer device (e.g., an iTouch). The housing maycontain or be operably coupled to a spring locking and release mechanismthat allows for insertion of the computer device into a receptacle thatforms a cavity in which it will be retained. Additionally, there may bea stabilization feature that is capable of stabilizing a smartphone. Thestabilization feature may, for example, be compressible cushioning orrubber material along one or more if not all of the sides of thereceptacle.

The housing may, for example, comprise, consist essentially of orconsist of a plastic material, a metal alloy or a combination thereof.Furthermore, the housing may be divided into three parts: L1, whichcontains most if not all of the electronics of the intelligent mirror;L2, which contains an ejection spring that is capable of causingejection of the computer device and mechanics for permitting thecomputer device to be rotated up to ninety degrees; and L3, whichcontains a receptacle for receiving the computer device. In someembodiments, the receptacle is deep enough to house the entire computerdevice. In other embodiments, the computer device is less than 30%, lessthan 20%, less than 10% or less that 5% longer than the receptacle.

The reflective surface is capable of reflecting images. Thus, the mirrorcan exist in a first state as a traditional mirror and in a second statein which all or part of the mirror functions as a graphic user interface(“GUI”). When acting as a graphic user interface, in some embodimentsthere is a liquid crystal display screen and optionally a backlight. Byway of example, in a first mode, a surface of the mirror may be darkenedto allow the mirror function as a reflective mirror. In a second mode,there is backlighting that permits the images of the smartphone to beviewed. Because smartphones can be operated through touchscreentechnologies, the outer surface of the mirror that overlays thesmartphone may either be sufficiently thin to permit touching of theoverlay to effect changes in the smartphone, or the overlay is itself atouchscreen that both projects the screen information from thesmartphone onto the overlay and is configured to receive informationfrom the smartphone and to transmit information received from a usertouching the overlay to the smartphone. In this latter case, theintelligent mirror contains the requisite circuitry to allowcommunication from the GUI to the smartphone. Accordingly, by use of thetouchscreen of the intelligent mirror, one may touch the mirror asopposed to the smartphone but still access the application of thetouchscreen.

In some embodiments, a home button is present on the mirror. Activationof the home button controls movement of the touchscreen between thefirst mode and the second mode. For example, the home button may belocated on the top of the rearview mirror. The button may be based onopen/closed circuit technologies and thus, the length of time that abutton is held will not affect the result of the action of pressing it.

A projector is located on a rear side of the housing and is configuredto project an image onto a windshield. In some embodiments, the rearviewmirror is mounted within a vehicle, and the projector is configured togenerate a heads up display. The projector may, for example, be a picoprojector that is capable of causing a heads up display onto thewindshield. Thus, the projector can project an image to the windshield.A second button may be present and used to activate the projection modeof the intelligent mirror. In some embodiments, the intelligent mirrormay be designed such that the project mode may only be activated whenthe computer device is in an active use mode, i.e., the applications ofthe computer device are accessible through the mirror and at least partof the mirror is not in a state in which it can reflect light.

In some embodiments, the rearview mirror further comprises a microphone.Optionally, it may also comprise a speaker. One benefit of themicrophone is that it can be used to facilitate hands free use of thesmartphone. The information received from the microphone may betransmitted to a central processing unit of either or both of thecomputer device and the intelligent mirror to cause activation of anapplication or carrying out of a task, e.g., switching between a mode inwhich the smartphone is displayed on the mirror and a mode in which itis not displayed, or switching between a mode in which the projectorproject images on the windshield and does not project images on thewindshield.

In some embodiments, the rearview mirror comprises circuitry and aconnector, wherein the connector comprises pins that are operablycoupled to the circuit and the pins are configured to engage contacts ofthe smartphone. The electronic circuitry allows for communicationbetween the mirror and smartphone when the smartphone is within thehousing. The connector may be configured to connect to a plurality ofdifferent types of smartphones and is complementary to the elements ofsmartphones that permit wired communications. Additionally oralternatively, the circuit may be part of a central processing unit(“CPU”) that is configured to connect to a computer of the vehiclethrough Wi-Fi. Depending on the year of the car, Wi-Fi connection may bethrough on board diagnostics (OBD) I or OBD II. The vehicle may bedesigned such that its computer is capable of being activated andcontrolled by one or both of physical controls and voice activatedcontrols. The physical controls may be located on the rearview mirror orat other locations within the vehicle, for example, on the steeringwheel or on the center console between the driver's seat and the frontpassenger seat. Further, in some embodiments, there are duplicativecontrols. Thus, there may be a control on the rearview mirror and thesame control on the steering wheel, thereby allowing the user a choiceof how to operate the intelligent mirror.

The rearview mirror may further comprise a rotation mechanism. Therotation mechanism may be configured to be capable of rotating all orpart of the touchscreen. For example, the rotation mechanism is capableof rotating the touchscreen up to 90 degrees. In some embodiment, thereare only two stable position: (i) horizontal, which refers to the normalorientation of the mirror; and (ii) vertical, which refers to anorientation that is 90 degrees from the horizontal. The mirror may bedesigned such that rotation from horizontal to vertical is clockwise andthat rotation from to vertical to horizontal is counterclockwise.Alternatively, the mirror may be designed such that rotation fromvertical to horizontal is counterclockwise and that rotation from tovertical to horizontal is clockwise. In some embodiments, the computerdevice is rotated along with the touchscreen, whereas in otherapplications, the computer device is not rotated.

An additional feature that may be present is an opening in a locationthat corresponds to a location of a camera feature on the smartphone. Insome embodiments, the housing has a first opening in a first locationthat corresponds to a location of a first camera feature of thesmartphone and a second opening in a second location that corresponds toa location of a second camera feature of the smartphone. As persons ofordinary skill in the art are aware, many smartphones are capable oftaking still pictures and/or video in a forward direction and a rearwarddirection by the presence of two lenses. In some embodiments, theintelligent mirror is equipped to permit continued use of these featuresof the smartphone when the smartphone is within the receptacle. Thus,there may be an aperture on the rear of the intelligent mirror that islocated in a position that permits the smartphone to function as acamera, and optionally on the front face of the mirror, there is anopening for a lens or the covering is sufficiently transparent to allowfor images to be recorded through it.

According to another embodiment, the present invention is directed to anautomobile that comprises an interior cabin, a windshield, and arearview mirror. The interior cabin may be a cabin of any type of car,including but not limited to a sedan, a race car, a convertible, or aminivan. Furthermore, when the vehicle is a convertible, the interiorcabin is defined as the location that would be defined by the interiorspace when the convertible top is in a position that defines a closedvolume.

The windshield is preferably made of laminated glass, which may forexample be referred to as safety glass. Thus, it preferably comprisestwo pieces of glass with a thin layer of vinyl between them. The presentinvention may be used with windshields that are in automobiles that arecurrently being manufactured and used in automobiles purchased by thepublic.

Preferably, the rearview mirror comprises: a housing, wherein thehousing comprises a docking element that is configured to receive acomputer device; a reflective surface; a touchscreen, wherein thetouchscreen overlays part or all of the reflective surface and thetouchscreen is configured to operate in at least two modes, wherein in afirst mode the touchscreen is a graphic user interface that isconfigured to receive input from a user and wherein in a second mode,the touchscreen is transparent; and a projector, wherein the projectoris located on a rear side of the housing and is configured to project animage onto a windshield. The touchscreen is operably coupled to thecomputer device when the computer device is engaged by the rearviewmirror, and thus able to communicate with the computer device throughcircuitry within the rearview mirror.

Within the automobile there may be a power supply and a cable thatconnects the rearview mirror to the power supply. In some embodiments,power may be supplied to the intelligent mirror through two power feeds.By way of a non-limiting example, power may be supplied to theintelligent mirror from a battery along wires. Accordingly, theintelligent mirror may comprise a power adapter, which as persons ofordinary skill in the art are aware, are common for use with dockingstations. The power adapter may for example comprise a 30 pin Appleconnector or a 6 pin lightening connector. The power adapter may serveone or two functions: providing energy to the smartphone, optionally tocharge the smartphone's battery, and enabling communication with certainfeatures of the car, e.g., a stereo. Alternatively or additionally, thesmartphone will communicate with the car through Wi-Fi protocols.Furthermore, various embodiments of the present invention may be usedwith Bluetooth technologies, which refer to wireless technologies thatare standard for exchanging data of short distances. These technologiesmay use short-wavelength radio transmission in the ISM band of from2400-2480 MHz from fixed and mobile devices, thereby creating personalarea networks that have high levels of security.

In one embodiment, leaving the battery, there may be a first wire thatis the positive wire and travels to contacts in a port that correspondto pin 1 or pin 16 within the intelligent mirror, and there may be asecond wire that is a negative wire that travels to contacts in a portthat correspond to pin 2 or pin 12. The potential difference may, forexample, be 12 volts. The two wires may be fused in a 10 amp in linethat contains one or more resistors and has a potential difference ofabout 5.5 volts to match the USB power and be connected to the USB port.

The wires may for example be hidden within an A-pillar. As persons ofordinary skill in the art are aware, the A-pillar of a vehicle is thefirst pillar of the passenger compartment. It usually borders one sideof the windshield.

The power adapter described above may also be referred to as acable-connector. Preferably, the cable connector has a positive andnegative wire. As persons of ordinary skill in the art will recognize,the set of pins that emerge from an iPhone 4 contain positive andnegative elements; whereas the set of pins that emerge from an iPhone 5do not contain these elements. Thus, when an iPhone 5 is used, anadditional adapter may be utilized to enable communication with thatdevice.

As the discussion above highlights, different smartphones need differentcable-connectors. Optionally, a user of a car with an intelligent mirrorcould order the mirror that is equipped with the appropriatecable-connector for his or her smartphone. Alternatively, theintelligent mirror could contain a plurality of cable-connectors and aslider or other mechanical tool that permits selection of the correctadapter.

In some embodiments, an additional cable emerges from the intelligentmirror to a region of the automobile that allows for grounding.

Additionally or alternatively, there may also be a sound system and oneor more audio leads, wherein the audio leads connect the rearview mirrorto the sound system. These leads may permit communication with a stereoof a vehicle and the projection of sound through the speakers within thevehicle. Thus, by way of further example, pin 8 of the smartphone maycontact the corresponding contact within the receptacle to facilitateright audio within the automobile. This may be referred to as the tip.Pin 9 of the smartphone may contact the corresponding contact within thereceptacle to facilitate left audio within the automobile. This may bereferred to as the ring. In this embodiment, pin 10 would correspond tothe sleeve.

There may also be a sensor that automatically determines whether theintelligent mirror should be in a standard lighting mode, i.e., no lampon to facilitate use as a mirror, or whether it should be in a lamp-onmode, in which case a dim lighting is provided to view the smartphone.In one embodiment, the lamp-on mode is automatically activated when thesmartphone use of the mirror is activated. Optionally, this may alsocause the head lights of the automobile to be turned on if they have nototherwise been turned on.

Preferably, in the rearview mirror, the automobile further comprises acircuit and a connector, wherein the connector comprises pins that areoperably coupled to the circuit and the pins are configured to engagecontacts of the smartphone.

Additionally, in some embodiments, the receptacle is configured toreceive smartphones that are of a plurality of different sizes. Thereceptacle may, for example, contain elements that are compressible whensubject to pressure and thus will hold in place smartphones of differentsizes.

The housing may have an opening in a location on its rear side thatcorresponds to a location of a camera feature of the smartphone. Thus,there may be a visual pass through that allows the camera to takes stillor video pictures when engaged with the intelligent mirror.

In some embodiments, the mirror functions as a telematics mirror. Theterm “telematics” refers to the mirror and cellular telephone circuitrybeing in direct communication with an inboard vehicle communicationsystem software, computer chip, sensor, transmitter, receiver,microprocessor or other electronic devices. In various embodiments, thecomputer device is in communication with the central processing unit ofthe motor vehicle and is capable of running and/or displayingdiagnostics.

The above-mentioned embodiments are described in connection withautomobiles. However, they may be used in connection with other motorvehicles, including but not limited to boats and buses. As persons ofordinary skill in the art will recognize, the present invention isintended to be used only in circumstances that will not impede safeoperation of the motor vehicle or cause distraction of a driver. Thus,by way of example it may be used when an automobile is parked.

Additionally, the above-mentioned embodiments are described as for usein connection with rearview mirrors. However, one can use the presentinvention by placing the phone in a receptacle that is located inanother place such as in a steering wheel, on a dashboard or in a seatdivider and through wired and/or wireless technology have the phone incommunication with a mirror that has a pico projector.

Furthermore, in some embodiments, the mirror or vehicle that containsthe mirror also contains a laser jammer, which also may be referred toas a laser defuser, laser shifter or laser scrambler. As persons ofordinary skill in the art know, a laser jammer detects an incoming laserbeam and sends a signals (e.g., a light noise) that confuse thetransmitter of the beam (e.g., a laser gun) so that it does not detect aspeed. When this feature is present, preferably it is not used for thepurpose of jamming laser guns of law enforcement in jurisdictions inwhich such a use is prohibited by law. The laser jammer functionally maybe within the housing of the mirror or be found as part of anapplication on the smartphone. The laser jamming functionality may, forexample, be used to thwart attempts by third parties who use lasers inorder to determine the speed of the vehicle that contains the laserjammer.

A smartphone that is used in connection with the present inventionpreferably has all of the necessary equipment for transmitting andreceiving telephone calls, e.g., a SIM card if necessary, and hardwareand software for wireless communication through various cellularnetworks. Additionally, as with many currently known technologies,preferably the smartphone contains technologies that permit voiceactivation and operation, e.g., Apples' Siri technology, and theintelligent mirror has a microphone that is operably coupled to thecomputer device.

In some embodiments, the intelligent mirror has voice activatedtechnologies. These technologies may enable a user to direct theintelligent mirror to move among different states, e.g., (1) as a puremirror; (2) as a mirror on its left portion and a smartphone display onits right portion, which is in a horizontal orientation; (3) as a mirroron its left portion and a smartphone display on its right portion, whichis in a vertical orientation; (4) with projection functionallyactivating in combination with any of (1)-(3); and (5) with camerafunctionality in combination with any of (1)-(4).

In some embodiments, the intelligent mirror comprises global positioningsatellite (GPS) functionality independent of any GPS functionality inthe computer device. In other embodiments, the vehicle in which theintelligent mirror is situated comprises global positioning satellite(GPS) functionality independent of any GPS functionality in the computerdevice.

Various embodiments of the present invention may be further understoodby reference to the accompanying figures. The figures are intended forillustrative purposes only and should not be construed as limiting theinvention in any way.

FIG. 1 shows a front view of a mirror. There is a standard windshieldmount 102, which enables mounting to the windshield of a motor vehicle.Also shown is the mirror glass 107, which may comprise a thin plasticoverlay. A pivot point 104 is illustrated by broken lines to representthat this element is not seen by a user.

On the top of the mirror are three buttons 101, which protrude throughthe housing 105, and which can enable control of various features of theintelligent mirror. Examples of these features include but are notlimited to projection of sound, ejection of a computing device andactivation/deactivation of display of the screen of the computingdevice. The broken vertical line on the right portion of the mirrorprovides a right most outline of where a smartphone would sit whenengaged within a housing of the mirror. For reference, also shown is alocation of a microphone 103, and an angle adjuster 106.

FIG. 2 shows a mirror similar to that of FIG. 1; however, the rightportion of the mirror has been rotated approximately ninety degrees.Rotation may be along a pivot point 204. In this figure the pivot pointis shown in broken lines; however, it would not be visible to user ofthe device.

As this figure illustrates, the portion of the intelligent mirror thatrotates is only a front portion (e.g., approximately 5%-40% or 10%-30%of the depth of the intelligent mirror) of the right portion (e.g.,approximately 30-50% or 40-45% of the length of the intelligent mirror).Thus, part of the housing 205, the part behind where the computer deviceis housed, would remain in its original orientation. For referencerelated to FIG. 1, also shown are the mirrored glass, optionally withthe thin plastic covering 207, the angle adjuster 206, the microphone203, the control buttons 201, and the windshield mount 202.

In FIGS. 1 and 2, the location within the rearview mirror housing forthe smartphone is shown as being on the right side. There is notechnological impediment to putting the location on the left side.However, in many cases in which drivers sit on the left side of thevehicle, the drivers may prefer to have the location on the right sidebecause in this configuration, when the phone is in the verticalorientation, it will be less distracting to the driver and more readilyaccessible to a passenger or co-pilot. As persons of ordinary skill inthe art are aware, in jurisdictions in which drivers sit on the rightside of the vehicle, the opposite configuration would typically be moredesirable.

FIG. 3 shows a side view of a mirror of the present invention. Themirror may be mounted to a windshield by devices that are now known orthat will come to be known for mounting rearview mirrors to automobiles,including but not limiting to male 302A and female 302 members, orscrews and threads (not shown).

The mirror may have a mirror adjust pivot point 308 that permits adriver to adjust the housing 305 of the mirror. Also present is an angleadjuster 306, which permits angling of the mirror glass 307, whichcomprises the reflective surface of the device. The mirror also containsan opening that is equipped with a spring loaded mount to permit releasefrom opening 309, and a button 101 that controls release from the mount.Shown in broken lines is pivot point 304.

FIG. 4 shows a method for inserting a smartphone into an intelligentmirror. The smartphone 410 enters from the right side of the mirror,which corresponds to the passenger side of the vehicle and is insertedinto the molded plastic body 405. For reference, also shown are thewindshield mount 402, the control buttons 401, the microphone 403 andthe angle adjuster 406 and the reflective surface 407.

FIG. 5 shows a reverse view of a mirror of the present invention. Forreference, the figure shows the mounting apparatus 502 and 502A, as wellas the molded plastic body 505, the mirror adjust pivot 508, the controlbuttons 501 and the angle adjuster 506. The figure also shows a speaker514. The speaker is located on the side opposite to where the smartphoneis loaded. Further, the figure shows a projector lens 515 and lamp 516.

FIG. 5 also shows an option for connecting the intelligent mirror to thecomputer of an automobile. Though a grommet 513 emerges a wire harness512 that at the end opposite to that of the grommet connector to aconnector 511.

FIG. 6 shows a side view of an intelligent mirror. For reference,right-most in the figure is the mirror glass or thin plastic 607. Alsoshown is the housing 605, which contains a pico projector lens 615, anda pico projector lamp and housing for electronics 616 above theprojector. The figure also shows the location of the angle adjuster 606and the mirror adjust pivot 608. In the figure, the lamp is shown asoriented 180 degrees from the mirror (or thin plastic). The mirroradjust pivot is shown as connected to a standard windshield mount 602that is secured by a securing element such as a screw 602A that may beassociated with a threading, not shown, but internal to the mount.

FIG. 7 is a representation of a front view of a mirror of the presentinvention with part of the internal elements shown. Accordingly, themirror is shown within the plastic housing 705. Although not visible tothe user, the figure also shows a pivot point 704 in broken lines behindthe location in which the smartphone will sit. At the bottom of thefigure the angle adjuster 706 is shown, and at the top of the housingpart of the microphone 703 is shown. To further assist the reader, forreference the location of the windshield mount 702 is provided in brokenlines. Similarly, the buttons 701 for control of the device are shown.

In the left portion of the figure is shown a speaker cone 720, within aspeaker 714 that is attached via wiring to an endpoint wiring harness719 that is located within a printed circuit board (“PCB”) 718. The PCBalso contains the wiring circuit 717 that allows for communication withthe smartphone when engaged as well as communication with the controlbuttons 701. The endpoint wiring harness is also connected to a wireharness 712 through a grommet 713, which is connected to a connector 711that is connected to wiring to the computer of the vehicle (not shown inFIG. 7).

FIG. 8 is representation of a side view of the intelligent mirror withinthe cabin of a vehicle. A person 824 sits leaning against the back of aseat 825. From his or her vantage point, he or she can view the mirror823 and see the projection of the mirror 822 on the windshield 821.

Persons of ordinary skill in the art will readily appreciate the variousapplications of the present invention. For example, a person who is lostcan, while parked, display a large map on the windshield. Additionally,in poor visibility conditions, a user can determine what is ahead bycausing the cellular phone to obtain data transmitted to it wirelesslythat corresponds to real time information of upcoming traffic orhazards. In some embodiments, the intelligent mirror or cellular phonecomprises an infrared and/or sonar functionality that permits detectionsof items or physical activities that may or may not be visible ordifficult to see and projects them onto the windshield.

In one embodiment, the driver may insert his or her smartphone into therearview mirror prior to or after turning on the engine of the batteryof the car. As persons of ordinary skill in the art are aware, duringthe operation of many car radios and CD players, a user can sendelectricity from the battery without turning on the engine. Similarly,the vehicles of the present invention can be designed such thatelectricity flows to the rear view mirror whenever it would flow to aradio or CD player, regardless of whether the car engine has been turnedon.

While the car is parked, and electricity is flowing to the mirror, thedriver may turn the right portion of the mirror ninety degrees and usethe smartphone as he or she would outside of the mirror. He or she mayuse a map application and through voice activation or by pressing abutton on the top of the rearview phone, cause a projection the map ontothe windshield. The user may, after studying the map, return the portionof the mirror that houses the smartphone to a horizontal position andeither through voice activation or by pressing a button on the top ofthe rearview phone cause the mirror to return to a state in which itserves solely a reflective purpose.

In another application, the intelligent mirror can be configured totransmit information such as through RFID technologies. This informationmay correspond to payment information that would enable a driver of avehicle to make a transaction through a mobile wallet application of thesmartphone or a mobile wallet application within the car. These types ofpayments could be read by appropriately configured technologies and usedat drive through channels of commerce, e.g., drive through restaurants,or along highways where tolls are collected.

I claim:
 1. A rearview mirror comprising: (a) a housing, wherein thehousing comprises a docking element that is configured to receive asmartphone; (b) a reflective surface; (c) a touchscreen, wherein thetouchscreen overlays part or all of the reflective surface and thetouchscreen is configured to operate in at least two modes, wherein in afirst mode the touchscreen is a graphic user interface that isconfigured to receive input from a user and wherein in a second mode,the touchscreen is transparent; and (d) a projector, wherein theprojector is located on a rear side of the housing and is configured toproject an image onto a windshield, wherein the rearview mirror ismounted within a vehicle.
 2. The rearview mirror of claim 1 furthercomprising a microphone.
 3. The rearview mirror of claim 2 furthercomprising a speaker.
 4. The rearview mirror of claim 1 furthercomprising a circuit and a connector, wherein the connector comprisespins that are operably coupled to the circuit, wherein the smartphonecomprises contacts and the pins are configured to engage the contacts ofthe smartphone.
 5. The rearview mirror of claim 4, wherein the connectoris configured to connect to a plurality of different types ofsmartphones.
 6. The rearview mirror of claim 4, wherein the circuit ispart of a central processing unit that is configured to connect to acomputer of the vehicle through Wi-Fi.
 7. The rearview mirror of claim1, wherein the projector is configured to generate a heads up display.8. The rearview mirror of claim 1 further comprising a rotationmechanism, wherein the rotation mechanism is capable of rotating all orpart of the touchscreen.
 9. The rearview mirror of claim 1 furthercomprising a rotation mechanism, wherein the rotation mechanism iscapable of rotating the touchscreen up to 90 degrees.
 10. The rearviewmirror of claim 1 further comprising a spring locking and releasemechanism.
 11. The rearview mirror of claim 1 further comprising astabilization feature, wherein the stabilization feature is capable ofstabilizing the smartphone.
 12. The rearview mirror of claim 1 furthercomprising a home button, wherein activation of the home button controlsmovement of the touchscreen between the first mode and the second mode.13. The rearview mirror of claim 1, wherein the housing has an openingin a location that corresponds to a location of a camera feature of thesmartphone.
 14. The rearview mirror of claim 1, wherein the housingcomprises a laser jamming element.
 15. An automobile comprising: (a) aninterior cabin; (b) a windshield; and (c) a rearview mirror comprising:i. a housing, wherein the housing comprises a docking element that isconfigured to receive a smartphone; ii. a reflective surface; iii. atouchscreen, wherein the touchscreen overlays part or all of thereflective surface and the touchscreen is configured to operate in atleast two modes, wherein in a first mode the touchscreen is a graphicuser interface that is configured to receive input from a user andwherein in a second mode, the touchscreen is transparent; and iv. aprojector, wherein the projector is located on a rear side of thehousing and is configured to project an image onto a windshield.
 16. Theautomobile of claim 15 further comprising a power supply and a cablethat connects the rearview mirror to the power supply.
 17. Theautomobile of claim 16 further comprising a sound system and an audiolead, wherein the audio lead connects the rearview mirror to the soundsystem.
 18. The automobile of claim 16 further comprising a circuit anda connector, wherein the connector comprises pins that are operablycoupled to the circuit and smartphone comprises contacts and the pinsare configured to engage the contacts of the smartphone.
 19. Theautomobile of claim 15, wherein the receptacle is configured to receivesmartphones that are of a plurality of different sizes.
 20. Theautomobile of claim 15, wherein the housing has an opening in a locationthat corresponds to a location of a camera feature of the smartphone.